Second Chance Universe(Series): Behind the Scenes
by Tashasaurous
Summary: AU: Ever wondered what occurred during the events of the games, manga and the Second Chance series? Well, here's your chance to find out. Many of these stories will be in random as they are mentioned briefly in everything and even not yet shown in current stories being worked on or stories not yet written. Here are events behind the scenes of the heroes and villains. *SPOILERS*
1. Back-Scene 1

**Second Chance Universe(Series): Behind the Scenes.**

 **Author's Note: Suffering writer's block again, but this story is actually inspired by Desha's Final Fantasy VII series "Take Care of Reno", especially the "Interludes". Here we go through random times and places of events that are mentioned in my other stories or are not yet seen in worked on stories such as "Second Being-The Full Story", "Second Life: Strelitzia's Story" and "Kingdom Hearts III: Second War", and even canon references from the actual games and Manga from Birth By Sleep to Axel's final stand in Kingdom Hearts 2(where this series actually begins).**

 **Please note that none of these will be in order, but I will reveal when it was revealed or will be revealed.**

 **I don't own anything here.**

* * *

 _Back-Scene 1-Losing a Friend: This takes place after Axel loses his second fight to Roxas before the latter merges with Sora, as shown in "Kingdom Hearts 2"..._

 _"Axel..." Roxas mumured, remosed now that his memories had come back. He remembered how angry and betrayed he felt when Axel, his only best friend in Organization XIII, kept secrets from him._

 _But now remembering how Axel told him that he would miss the young blonde, he realized that combined with the redhead's hurtful expressions and anger, despite both of them not meant to have any feelings, he'd been serious._

 _"Let's meet again...in the next life." Axel panted, smiling sincerely._

 _Roxas couldn't help but smile back at his friend...his real friend. "Yeah, I'll be waiting."_

 _A pause._

 _"Silly. Just because you have a next life." Axel chuckled softly, before disappearing._

* * *

Axel sighed as he gazed at the sun set from Sunset Hill. He was still recovering from his fight with Roxas who, not only remained as tough as he had been in their days together in the Organization, but managed to bring up two Keyblades which was impossible.

He'd been shocked to see the display, but it had made the battle more interesting and in the end...He was glad that he lost. But that didn't make a difference.

Roxas is gone. He wasn't coming back.

Then again, Axel might as well consider himself gone, too. He failed in his mission to dispose of his former best friend, and because of this failure, the penalty is being Dusked or destroyed. He knew it was coming, and he knew that his days in the Organization were now over.

But...he couldn't bring himself to go back to face his punishment. He had no idea why or how it was possible but...The redhead didn't want that. Not yet. Maybe not ever. He was scared. After being a human-formed Nobody for so long, Axel didn't want to even think what it would be like to be those useless and annoying Dusks.

 _"Why do you hesitate? You, who has been ruthless towards those who've turned their backs on the Organization? If he doesn't return, you know what you must do. Or you will face the consequences."_

Xemnas's words echoed in his mind and ears, and Axel squeezed his eyes shut. It was true that Axel had been ruthless towards traitors who went against the Organization, and he never hesitated in disposing them or even those who didn't betray the Organization at all, but would suspect that something was up between him and...Saix.

Vexen, Marluxia, and Zexion were the examples, and Larxene's death was done by Sora's group in Castle Oblivion. Axel hadn't cared about them and knew that if Marluxia and Larxene had gotten what they wanted, his and Saix's plans which were similar would be thrown right out of the window.

But with Roxas, it was completely different. Since that kid arrived, Axel had been made his mentor and carer, to help him learn the ropes. Roxas...that clueless, little innocent, kind and soft kid...the more Axel spent time with him, the more the redhead began to remember his childhood when he was a human, back when he was 'Lea'.

"...Who'd've thunk that kid changed me?" Axel muttered to himself, smiling a little in saddness. Not just Roxas...but Sora as well, and he hardly knew his friend's Original self. But both of them made him laugh and he enjoyed Roxas's company and Sora's heroic side, especially back in Castle Oblivion.

When Axel freed Namine. Maybe he'd been soft back then too.

The back of his hairs prickled the back of his neck, a scent of familiar darkness, the sense of someone behind him, and a sharp sound of a weapon pointed at his back brought Axel out from his thoughts, but he remained unflinched as a familiar bat-like sword just an inch from stabbing him was right there.

"...You gonna finish me off behind my back, huh?" Axel inquired in a way of greeting at the unsuspected but not surprising visitor.

The figure behind him was a tall hooded figure in the same coat Axel wore, his hood covering his face. Yet this was Riku in his Ansem form, and behind him was a shocked and horrified Namine, not to mention that she looked stunned.

"Why are you here?" 'Ansem' demanded darkly.

"Oh, I dunno. Just enjoying the view while the Organization is plotting my demise since I failed to get rid of Roxas who's probably with Sora by now. That good enough to sastify you?" Axel grumbled in a tone of sarcasm.

"..."

Axel sighed. "I'm on the edge of being Dusked...That...is not somethin' I would want but...I can't exactly go back and hope for the best. There is no hope for Nobodies...especially not for me."

'Ansem' hesitated a little, wondering if Axel was telling the truth or not. He shared a glance with Namine who felt a little uneasy given how she was being threatened to be harmed just to get to Marluxia despite that Axel let her go to see Sora, so that she could tell him the truth.

Still, she caught glimpse of Axel and Roxas' friendship and it hurt her that they were forced to separate. It hurt just as much as it hurt her to rearrange Sora's memories and then being forced to hasten her progress under DiZ's orders.

"You gave me hope, Axel." Namine finally spoke up, taking a seat on the bench nearby.

"Was wonderin' where you've been." Axel greeted, having also sensed Namine there and, in a weird way, he was glad that she was okay. He then answered her statement, "I didn't do anything."

"You let me go so I can talk to Sora." Namine pointed out, opening her sketch book and found what she was looking for; a picture she drew of Sora and Roxas holding hands.

"You really can't return to the Organization?" 'Ansem' questioned, suspicion in his voice, and Axel couldn't blame him for that.

The redhead shrugged hopelessly, "If I do, they'll just destroy me for not being able to destroy Roxas. Or another case scenario, I'm turned into a dusk, just like I said. As far as that goes, they kicked me out of the job and the only place I was able to live in. So...there's nothing left."

He then breathed shakily and gazed at the figure, "Just in case, though...is Roxas...?"

'Ansem' nodded, somewhat grimly. Nobody or not, Axel's friendship with Roxas was close, just like his(Riku's) friendship with Sora. Yet both betrayed the two halves of the same person, and they were paying the hurting price for it.

"Sora's awake, but...not the way DiZ would want." 'Ansem' informed. "He doesn't even know who Roxas is."

"They merged, but because Sora turned back into a human and Roxas developed his own memories, Sora doesn't have those memories. He only remembers of everything before reaching Castle Oblivion. Because his heart is strongly connected to Kairi's." Namine confirmed, lowering her head in sadness and guilt.

"Not the way DiZ would want, huh?" Axel asked, sensing a suspicion rising. "Sounds to me that he wanted to use Sora for his own purpose, right?"

A long tensed pause of silence followed, before 'Ansem' finally replied, "He wants...revenge. Against the Organization, I think. He wants Sora to take them down, and called Roxas a tool."

Axel grunted angrily, cletching his fists that shook while he tried to calm that anger down. He didn't want a repeat of the fight against his own best friend.

"Sounds more like he's treatin' Sora as a tool just to get what he wants. That guy's no better than Xemnas and Marluxia...!" The redhead grunted, furiously.

"...Revenge won't solve anything." 'Ansem' agreed.

The trio heard the bells of a train and when Axel turned to look, he approached the wooden railing and leaned against it as down below, a real ghost train came into view before disappearing into a flash of light. That was when Axel knew the truth;

Roxas was gone; back inside Sora, where he belonged.

"Guess that's that." Axel muttered, sadly.

 _ **KINGDOM HEARTS II  
**_ _ **&  
**_ _ **SECOND CHANCE.**_

* * *

 **A/N: Making this chapter made me shed tears as I wrote Axel's part before 'Ansem' and Namine's arrival. See you in the next random scene and hopefully it'll be a happier one. This will be a mixture of happiness, sadness, fear, anger, confusion, ect.**


	2. Back-Scene 2

**Second Chance Universe(Series): Behind the Scenes.**

 **Author's Note: I originally intended on updating this on Wednesday, but life caught up and so I postponed until today.**

 **Please remember that none of these will be in order.**

 **I don't own anything here.**

* * *

 _Back-Scene 2-Camping Trip Gone Wrong: This takes place after Mickey became Yen Sid's Apprentice. Let's just say the world has become colourful. As mentioned in Chapter 20: Journey to the Center of Atlantis in "Kingdom Hearts III: Second War"..._

 _"You know a lot about camping, don't you, Mickey?" Skuld questioned with a fond smile._

 _"Well, sure." Mickey replied with a smile. "Donald, Goofy and I used to go camping together every third weekend. I remember one time Goofy showed me the perfect cast."_

 _"The Perfect what?" Sora asked, having overheard._

 _"The perfect cast." Goofy answered this time as he also heard this, explaining, "Muh dad taught it to me. Said it's been handed down for about twelve or thirteen Goof generations."_

 _"Twelve or thirteen Goof generations?" Roxas asked, curiously._

 _Before Goofy can continued, Donald quickly waved his hand and said, "Why don't you ask him to show you later when we're at a beach or something!"_

 _"Aw, you're still not mad at him about that, are ya' Donald?" Mickey asked, even though he knew that time as well._

 _"About what?" Riku asked._

 _"It's a long story." Mickey shrugged, "Well, huh...Goofy showed us the Perfect Cast and uh...accidently reeled in Big-Foot. That was about eighteen years ago when this happened._

* * *

It was such a nice early evening. A perfect day to go Camping, and the forest was beautiful too. Even more so now that the world no longer had it's black and white sketchy look. The sky and water were blue, the grass and leaves were green, the sun was golden and yellow and as evening drew, the sky would turn orange to pink and purple and finally navy blue with the stars shining.

It's been at least a year since Mickey Mouse became the Apprentice of the old but very wise and powerful human Sorcerer Yen Sid. In that time not only Mickey had learned the arts of magic, but also learned, to his shock at the time, that he was one of the few but many chosen wielders of the Keyblade.

Upon returning to his home world, Mickey thought of changing it to show off the wonders of true colour. He practiced hard until he got the hang of it, and boy did it make such a wonderful difference. Even the citizens of his home changed; they looked, as he would put it, much more modern now.

Mickey himself had changed appearance when he first arrived at Yen Sid's Tower a year ago; no longer was Mickey Mouse black and white with black pupil eyes. Now his eyes were white with black pupils, his face was a peachy colour, his original white shorts were now red with white sew buttons, and his shoes were yellow.

His friends, Donald and Goofy had a change of appearances too, as did everyone else. Donald was still white in feathers, but his bill and legs were orangey yellow, his eyes were blue with black pupils, and he changed shape in a way of his bill and legs too. His sailors hat was blue, and his shirt was also blue with a red bow-tie, and white lines. Goofy's legs and arms and face changed almost dramatically but he was still himself. He now wore an orange jumper with a yellow vest, his silly hat was green, he wore blue baggy pants and brown shoes.

The instant the colour and body shape transformations hit, everyone loved this new display instantly, because despite things changing for the better on the outside, everyone was the same in the inside...well, Mickey noticed a few changes in him. He learned to be more responsible and came to love his friends and family even more. But all in the all, he was still the same Mickey Mouse.

"Wow, fellas. This is our first camping trip where everything's in colour." Mickey remarked with a smile, wearing a boat vest which was orange, and a fishing hat. He, Donald and Goofy were holding fishing poles to catch and fry up some fish for dinner.

"Yeah, you said it. I could just watch the sunset everyday." Donald agreed, his eyes never leaving the now forever colourful rays of the sun setting.

"Hey, I got an idea." Goofy perked up. "Why don't we celebrate with me showin' ya's the Perfect Cast?"

"The perfect what?" Mickey blinked, confused.

"The Perfect Cast! My dad taught it to me when I was a l'il kid. Said it's been handed down for about twelve or thirteen Goof generations." His friend replied.

Mickey thought about it, and while half of him was screaming that this was a bad idea, he was curious about the Perfect Cast that Goofy knew about. Donald on the other hand looked annoyed and uninterested.

In the end, Mickey shrugged and said with a smile, "Sure! I'd love to see that, Goofy."

"Oh hum." Donald muttered, faking a yawn.

The trio went up to the edge of the beautiful lake that glittered in the sunlight, which was far more beautiful than all of the previous years they went fishing. Goofy was holding his fishing pole.

"Okay, here goes." Goofy began, as he relaxed his shoulders and made sure his feet were apart, continuing, "You gotta be loose. Relax. With your feet apart, and..."

He then did very odd standing positions as he swung the pole around, which had Mickey look at him dumbfounded, and Donald rolled his eyes in exasperation and boredom. "Ten o'clock. Two o'clock. Quarter to three, Tour Jete, Twist, over, Pas de deux, I'm a little teapot, and the windup..."

Goofy leaned back as far as he could as the fishing line and hook went flying backwards, and while Mickey and Donald were certain that their clumsy friend would fall over, all three of them were unaware that the hook went so far back that snatched a cooked piece of steak from a barbecue which Pete was cooking as he decided to go camping as well, away from his three enemies, but unaware that things were about to go wrong.

"And let 'er fly!" Goofy jerked forward a second later, and the string, the hook and the captured steak went flying and vanishing into the distance. Goofy winked at his friends. "The Perfect Cast!"

"Wow! That was amazing, Goofy! I didn't know you could do that." Mickey exclaimed in awe, and even Donald was surprised and admittedly impressed.

"Ay-yhuck! Thanks." Goofy shrugged, before reeling in as he felt that he caught something. He then requested for a video camera which Mickey handed over.

"Garwsh, sure is a big one." Goofy remarked.

"Oh boy! We're gonna have a big feast tonight!" Donald said happily.

Mickey on the other hand, sensing the bad vibes scream inside him, noticed something...furry and scary looking in the water as it was being pulled closer and closer.

"Um, fellas? I don't think it's a fish..." He muttered, worriedly.

"Must be over three pounds! I don't wanna miss this!" Goofy exclaimed, looking into the camera.

But Mickey's fears were confirmed, as out of the water, biting the piece of steak(where that came from, Mickey had no idea), was a huge orange ape-like monster with orange fur. Mickey and Donald both felt their hearts jump right up into their throats as they realized what it was.

"Uh, G-G-G-Goofy? It's BIGFOOT!" Mickey screamed in panic, pointing at the monster. Donald quivered like mad in fear.

Goofy, being, well, goofy, as usual, didn't get the memo at first and instead requested to the monster calmly, "Could you back up a bit Mister Foot? You're out of focus."

Bigfoot, seeing how it was lured by these campers, just roared angrily and loudly. The trio screamed in fright and quickly made a run for it, with Bigfoot giving chase. The steak that was in it's mouth went flying out and flew over Mickey and his friends, and right back to Pete's Campsite where it hit him in the face, knocking him over from his camping chair and making his plate of food fly all over the place.

Goofy turned around and began to run backwards, capturing and recording the events of Bigfoot still chasing them.

"Behold the legendary Bigfoot! Fabled but seldom..." Goofy began, only to trip on a log and accidentally threw his camera into the air where it landed into a tree.

"Quick! In the RV!" Mickey cried out to his friends, and as quickly as possible they repacked their camping equipment, shoving them all into the RV they rented out. Then with Mickey behind the wheel, he turned on the engine and soon they were driving off to safety, even with Bigfoot still chasing them.

"What's the idea of..." Pete grunted angrily, only to cough up dirt and dust as Mickey's RV drove past him in high-speed, at least 30km under the speed limit.

As soon as he stopped, Pete was about to yell at whoever drove by so quickly when he felt a shadow loom over him and the back of his neck prickle, making him realize he wasn't alone anymore.

"I'm gettin' that feeling something behind me is the reason why those guys drove off in such a hurry." Pete muttered worriedly to himself, and a soft growl that came with the shadow just confirmed it.

Slowly turning around, Pete saw that it was none other than Bigfoot who was glaring at him.

"Uh oh..." The bad guy muttered worriedly.

Bigfoot grabbed hold of him and began to whack and hit and smack him and twist and turn him and tying him up into several knots while Pete screamed painfully and in panic, trying to get away before he was tossed into the air and he then crashed right into another tree, his pants getting caught and he ended up hanging from a sharp branch.

Bigfoot in the meantime, noticing Pete's camping equipment and began to investigate, rummaging through it.

"Doooooh! Whoever lured Bigfoot here is gonna pay for this!" Pete yelled angrily, which echoed through out the entire forest.

Meanwhile, Mickey and his friends made it to another clearing in the forest which was not too far from the road back to town and they panted in relief as Mickey pulled the car to a stop. The trio slumped in their seats.

"Whew! That was close." Mickey wiped sweat from his forehead.

"Yeah, but at least we got to see and escape from Bigfoot. Ay-yhuck!" Goofy replied.

"Only because you had to reel it in by showing us that STUPID CAST, you back palooka! It's your fault that we nearly died!" Donald snapped angrily.

Goofy shrugged apologetically, feeling guilty for what happened. "Sorry."

"Oh, forget it! Next time, I'M doing all the fishing! Or at least you go fishing while I'm not around, okay!?" Donald continued to rant.

Mickey felt bad for what happened. "Aw, don't be mad at him, Donald. Goofy didn't know that Bigfoot was in the area. Besides, we all made it in once piece."

"But I ruined our camping trip." Goofy muttered sadly.

"That's okay, pal. Just be careful time, okay?" Mickey ensured him.

Goofy smiled a little. "Thanks, Mickey."

While Mickey was willing to forgive and forget, Donald just pouted and grumbled to himself. This was a grudge and the worst camping trip he will never forget.

Because he certainly didn't want to relive that experience or tell anyone else about this misadventure. Not even if anyone asks for that story.

 _ **KINGDOM HEARTS: BIRTH BY SLEEP,  
**_ _ **SECOND CHANCE  
AND  
**_ _ **KINGDOM HEARTS III: SECOND WAR.**_

* * *

 **A/N: The part with the Bigfoot is based on "A Goofy Movie" except that I changed the ending to ensure that Pete's the one with having Bigfoot at camp. See you in the next Back-Scene!**


	3. Back-Scene 3

**Second Chance Universe(Series): Behind the Scenes.**

 **Author's Note: This Back-Scene is set after "Kingdom Hearts III: Second War" and before a future KH story after that. If you want to avoid the spoiler, I know this would be a good time to leave and wait until the former story is finished which won't be until long after the real KH3 is released. Oh, and Sora, Riku and Kairi are still wearing the KH2 attire here.**

 **This is based on the Aladdin episode "The Ethereal" since Agrabah will not return in KH3. At least it's extremely unlikely due to the new Princesses of Heart which I think is a bit unfair. But that's Nomura's choice if he didn't like the King of Thieves story due to no Jafar or mainly because of the new Princesses. Oh well...that's just life. Disappointing but nothing we can do about it.**

 **Please remember that none of these will be in order.**

 **I don't own anything here.**

* * *

 _Back-Scene 3-The Ethereal: This takes place one month after the events of "Kingdom Hearts III: Second War"..._

* * *

 _Kairi and her friends had been visiting Agrabah for the day for a get together reunion. It wasn't much else now that the Realm of Light was safe for good. She and her fellow Princess of Heart, Princess Jasmine, or rather Queen Jasmine now, were taking a stroll around the streets of Agrabah where an unusual golden mask at a jewelry stand caught their attention._

 _"I wonder what that mask if for." Kairi thought aloud._

 _Jasmine didn't seem to answer, and instead picked it up, only for her and Kairi to gasp when the Mask began to glow in the eye-holes and mouth, and levitate itself before they heard a woman's voice echo...coming from it._

 _"_ The time is near. Ice shall fall from the sky. _"_

 _As though predicted, it began to hail from the sky which both Kairi and Jasmine had to try and quickly look around for a place to take shelter._

 _"_ The earth shall move. _"_

 _True to it's words, a violent Earthquake began to rock the city and both Princesses of heart fell onto the ground in front of a building, and quickly had to roll out of the way before a vase would land on top of them._

 _"_ Light shall become dark. Creatures of destruction shall bring forth their wrath. _"_

 _Feeling their hearts ache badly all of the sudden, Kairi and Jasmine both knelt on their knees while placing their hands on their chests, as dark mists began to form around them, and when they looked up, an eclipse began to form, covering the sun and placing the land into darkness. Then yellow demon like eyes began to appear all around them._

 _Terrified, Kairi made to summon her Keyblade, but find to her and Jasmine's horror that it would not appear. To make things worse, darkness melted into a giant hand that resembled a Darkside Heartless, and just as Kairi pushed her friend out of the way, the massive hand clasped the sixteen year old girl and lifted her up into the air._

 _"Let me go!" Kairi screamed out, struggling to pull herself free as memories of when she was captured by the Rock Titan at Olympus, and Bhunivelze in her nightmares._

 _"No! Kairi!" Jasmine cried out, horrified._

 _The eyes then merged together, reshaping into the Mask._

 _"_ Then I, the Ethereal, shall come, and the day of reckoning shall be at hand, beginning with Agrabah. Should it fall...all worlds will follow. _"_

 _Jasmine and Kairi both see a model of Agrabah which is covered in dark mists, swallowing it up and as the darkness cleared yet Kairi was still held captive, all that remained was Agrabah in ruins, buried under the sands and with the skies of the Realm of Darkness all around them. Both Princesses realized in horror that Jasmine's home had been lost into Darkness and sent to where worlds would lose their hearts end up._

 _"Agrabah! It can't be! No, no!" Jasmine cried out in utter heartbreak and dismay, before screaming as her heart was filled with darkness and she soon vanished in particles of light._

 _"NO! Jasmine!" Kairi screamed out, tears filling her eyes. She then screamed louder as the gaping sharp jaws of the darkness holding her captive began to engulf her into it's mouth to swallow her whole..._

* * *

"NO!" Kairi screamed as she jolted herself upright into a sitting position, panting as tears had soaked her cheeks. Looking around as she tried to get her bearings, the Princess of Heart realized that she was in her room of her house on Destiny Islands.

Her heart pounded in the intense fear of what she'd just seen, Kairi wiped her eyes to rid the tears as she willed herself to calm down.

"It was just a dream...a nightmare." Kairi whispered to herself. Yet her heart was telling her that something was wrong. Very wrong. She wasn't going to be able to shake it off anytime soon. Plus, she was worried about Jasmine and Agrabah.

Just then the sound of loud clanging was heard from outside her window. Blinking, Kairi looked and she gasped in shock when she saw...hail falling from the sky.

" _"Ice shall fall from the sky"_..." She repeated what the voice had told her and Jasmine in the dream.

This was troubling. She had to call Sora and Riku and everyone else.

* * *

Hours later, after Kairi told her two best friends of her concerns, they agreed to pay Jasmine and the others a visit. To their surprise, King Mickey insisted that he, Donald and Goofy would join them. Sora had considered in inviting the rest of the gang, but changed his mind when he knew that they were busy.

Ven, Skuld, Aqua and Terra were still busy in rebuilding the Land of Departure, Myde helping Kronk with finding a mansion in Kuzcotopia, Lea, Isa, Roxas, Xion and Namine were taking a vacation to Twilight Town to visit Hayner, Pence and Olette. Captain Jack Sparrow was still sailing the Black Pearl in hopes to locate a 'Fountain of Youth', Strelitzia and Chirithy were in New Basha helping Serah and Lightning. Basically, everyone but six of them were busy.

So the six of them arrived in Agrabah and, to their surprise, much like Destiny Islands and even Disney Castle, the streets were covered in snow where young children were playing happily. Kairi and her friends were looking around as they made their way to the Palace, discussing the situation.

"Maybe the Realm of Light is having a chilly start and the hail you heard just got mixed up in your dream." Sora was saying to Kairi.

"Well, if that's true, don't you think hail in warm summer months in places like the Islands and Agrabah just weird?" Kairi pointed out with a shrug.

"I agree. It's summer back at Disney Town too, so we shouldn't get hail either. Not to mention that hail in not one but three worlds is very unusual." Mickey agreed. He had explained that he had the exact same dream, but did not see Kairi or Jasmine together. Instead it was deja vu to the worlds that were lost to darkness two years ago.

"Hey, Sora!" A familiar voice called out.

Sora and his friends looked up and saw that Aladdin, in his casual attire, and Jasmine in her green-blue princess attire, along with Genie, were approaching them.

The group greeted each other with smiles, handshakes and in Kairi and Jasmine's case, hugs.

"I just knew you would come. I had a feeling you would." Jasmine said to her fellow Princess of Heart.

"Thank you, Jasmine. But..." Kairi began, her smile fading into that of concern. "One of the main reasons why my friends and I came here today is, well...it's about the hail. It's the same in the dream I had last night."

"You had that dream too?" Jasmine gasped, shocked.

"Wait, you mean Kairi had the same dream Jasmine had?" Aladdin asked, startled while Sora and the others were startled by Jasmine's revelation too.

"She said that she had a mysterious dream, and to make things more weird, hail started up back home too." Riku nodded.

"And in our home too." Goofy added, "The king had the same dream."

"Maybe they both had the same dream since they're connected to...whatever it is that happened since two years ago." Aladdin suggested.

"Okay, even if that's true, don't you think hail on a summer night in the desert is just a little strange?" Jasmine pointed out.

"Strange, yes. But add some lemon-lime flavoring and it's delicious!" Genie smiled, scooping up some snow in an ice-cream cone, adding some lime flavoring and made a lime-flavoured snowcone and licked it.

"So you dreamt about the hail. I'm sure it's just a coincidence. It's not the end of the worlds." Aladdin stated to Jasmine and Kairi.

Kairi sighed, "Maybe, but that's what we're worried about. It was the end of all worlds, starting with Agrabah."

"I know what you're both sayin'." Mickey sighed in concerned. "Look, there were signs before the worlds were destroyed, right?"

"Yes." Jasmine nodded. "In the dreams, the other signs happened before Agrabah was destroyed. If they happen, then I'll worry."

"Me too." Kairi nodded in agreement.

"Put your back into it, chimp!" A familiar and annoying voice called out not too far from them.

"Did those dream happen to include a noisy parrot?" Donald grumbled, instantly recognizing the voice.

True to Donald's word, Iago was in a big basket which was filled with scrolls and carried by a very annoyed Abu. Iago was giving the poor monkey harsh instructions.

"What's Iago doing here?" Sora asked, surprised. Last he checked the red parrot was still travelling with Cassim.

"Iago decided to visit and stay for a while." Aladdin shrugged, only for him, his wife and their friends to wince when Abu chattered angrily before throwing the basket onto the ground.

"Hey, watch it!" Iago snapped. "We're losing our fortunes here."

Riku picked up a scroll and read it aloud, " _"The Bird's Eye Tour of Agrabah"_?"

"That's the fortune?" Sora asked, skeptically.

"Look, people visit a city, they wanna know the hot spots." Iago explained after noticing that Sora's group had returned minus Lea's four best friends and the other six guys-Terra, Ventus, Aqua, Skuld, Myde and Jack Sparrow. "We here at Bird's Eye Tours are happy to provide a guide scroll…for a price. And thanks to last night's hailstorm I got to add a _"fun in freakish weather"_ section to this baby.

"What a way to make a living." Sora joked, and Aladdin nodded in agreement.

Iago rolled his eyes, "Hey, not all of us are gonna marry wealthy."

Just then, the ground began to shake violently and almost everyone lost their balance. Kairi and Jasmine both fell onto the ground in front of a building, and quickly had to roll out of the way before a vase would land on top of them. Then, as quickly as it came, it ended.

"Just like in the dream." Kairi whispered, sharing a very worried look with Jasmine who nodded in agreement.

"Is everyone alright?" Mickey asked, worriedly as he too realized that this was from the dream he had.

Sora and Aladdin both helped their lovers up as the former told Kairi, "It's okay. It's all over now."

"I don't know." Kairi shook her head. "In the dream, the Ethereal said, _"the earth shall move"_."

Genie, who transformed himself into a reported with a notepad and pencil, questioned both Princesses and the King, "This Ethereal character, what other beans did she spill?"

"Ice shall fall from the sky," Kairi began.

"The Earth shall move," Jasmine added.

"Light shall become dark, and creatures of destruction shall bring forth their wrath." Mickey concluded, and both Kairi and Jasmine both nodded quickly to silently indicate that the last two statements he said were what they heard in their shared dreams.

As the three were saying what they heard, Genie was writting them down as he took the notes, before scrunching up the paper and throwing it away, not concerned as he said, "I wouldn't worry too much about it if I were you."

"Actually, I'm beginning to have my doubts." Sora spoke up as he folded his arms to his chest. "Two years ago, about three days before the Heartless began to attack, I had the dream of facing the giant Darkside, and I had to fight it before it swallowed me up. Then I fought it for real just as the Islands were being destroyed."

"When it comes to dreams sorta like this one, you can't ignore it. Especially when it starts to happen for real." Mickey agreed firmly.

"I admit that dreaming the hail and the earthquake is a pretty big coincidence. But I'm pretty sure that's all it was. A coincidence." Aladdin said, still not at all concerned.

"Maybe you're right. Maybe it was a shared silly dream." Kairi shrugged, smiling weakly. But that didn't ease off the feeling of dread of what else could happen.

Unfortunately, the area began to darken and when everyone else looked up, to Kairi, Jasmine and Mickey's horror, an eclipse began to cover up the sun and the entire kingdom of Agrabah.

"Or maybe not!" Jasmine gasped.

" _"Light becomes dark"_...!" Sora muttered, eyes wide in worry. Now he definitely knew that his girlfriend and two friends were not having normal dreams.

"Still think it was a dream?" Mickey asked Aladdin, worriedly.

"I'm starting to have my doubts." Aladdin admitted.

Genie, now panicking himself, hurried to find and unscrunch the note he'd written down, read it quickly as he tried to memorize what Kairi, Jasmine and Mickey had said. "Let's see. Ice from the sky, earth moves, light becomes dark, that leaves…"

" _"Creatures of destruction shall bring forth their wrath"_!" Mickey exclaimed in horror.

Kairi then sensed something from around the corner as her heart began to beat fast. Placing her hands to her chest, she gasped in horror and cried out, "Sora!"

When Sora and the others turned to see what Kairi had seen, in the dark corner in the nearby alley, were yellow glowing eyes with mists of darkness forming from within. Donald and Goofy both screamed and hugged each other in horror.

"Creatures of destruction! Creatures of destruction!" Iago screamed in panic while pulling feathers out from his head.

"Heartless?" Sora guessed with a grunt, as he, Riku, Kairi, Mickey, and even Donald and Goofy quickly summoned their weapons to fight even though it was impossible. No Heartless had attacked in a month ever since Chaos and Bhunivelze were defeated. He guessed wrong, because as the eyes emerged from the darkness, the rest of it's body came with it; that of a giant Scorpion, followed by other giant Scorpions.

"Run, monkey, run!" Iago screamed as he hopped into the basket which Abu quickly picked up and carried as he began to run away, avoiding the stinger of one of the giant Scorpions.

"Here we ago again!" Goofy cried out.

Sora and his friends dodged out of the way as the Scorpions began their assault and attack on everyone and everything the could find. But the worldly travellers and their friends of Agrabah, including Jasmine who trained harder to fight in the recent events that happened in the Realm of Light, did their best to fight back. Sora tossed his Keyblade at one of the giant Scorpions which hit it twice before using his Motion Flow to grab it in light and then fling it towards other giant Scorpions. Riku thrusted his Keyblade downward before going into a stab at another Scorpion while dodging it's stinger. Kairi used her Pink Orbs of Light to blind and vanquish another, which that power blinded a few other Scorpions. That allowed Mickey to take them out one by one.

Donald and Goofy saved Iago and Abu from another Scorpion by Goofy distracted it by hitting it's head with his Shield, and then Donald used his Fireworks Spell to vanquish it. Aladdin pushed Jasmine out of the way to save her from another giant Scorpion and was saved himself when Genie blocked it with a huge beam of wood. Sora then held up his Keyblade in the air which glowed in light, forming into a large sword-shape like power of light as he thrusted it towards five other Scorpions that he used to fight off Chaos, finishing them with his Blue Orbs of Light. Genie then turned into a chef and created a giant cooking pot before scooping up the remaining giant Scorpions in a huge ladle and dropping them into the boiling water.

"Come to papa!" Genie declared, stirring up the newly made Scorpion Soup and then took a sip from the ladle. The results were comical, as usual. His eyes spun as it was very hot before he breathed out fire, followed by smoke as his eyes teared up due to the heat. "Ooo-eee! Just the way I likes it! Spicy!"

In that response, he picked up the pot and gulped down the entire pot almost in one go, which made Sora shake his head with a smile. Genie always had a way to do things despite them being silly at times. Well, at least the giant Scorpions were taken care of.

"That was close." Goofy sighed in relief, before asking in worry. "But that was the last sign. What happens now?"

"WHAT!? You mean there's more?" Donald exclaimed in dismay and shock.

"Then the Ethereal shall come." Kairi answered.

"Look!" Genie exclaimed, pointing upward.

When Sora, Kairi, Aladdin, Jasmine, Riku, Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Iago and Abu looked up, their eyes widened as the very same mask from Kairi, Jasmine and Mickey's dream hovered above them in the sky as the Eclipse came to an end. The mask was joined by a white robe that didn't seem to have a body. It was then that the three who had the dream knew that it was the Ethereal herself.

" _It is time. It is the day of reckoning for your civilization. I shall pass judgment upon this realm, starting with this Kingdom._ " The Ethereal spoke in a echoing voice.

Kairi felt her heart freeze. She remembered what else was spoken in her dream.

"Uh, not to be a pessimist, but what happens if you don't like what you see?" Iago asked nervously.

" _Then your city will be reduced to dust._ " The Ethereal answered.

"And then the rest of the worlds will fall into darkness?" Kairi questioned fearfully.

" _Yes. The fate of this realm lies in this kingdom._ "

"So what do we have to do to impress you?" Mickey asked. He didn't want the worlds to be fallen into darkness, especially when the Realm of Light had come extremely close in being destroyed and reshaped into Bhunivelze's image. Not to mention that what Sora had seen in the vision in the Realm of Time Rift of other possibilities didn't help as this was only one of two or three time-lines where no one was lost or separated again or killed.

"Show me what makes Agrabah and your worlds great." The Ethereal explained, turning her gaze to Kairi, Jasmine and Mickey. "You three; Princess Kairi, Princess Jasmine and King Mickey Mouse, will show me."

Kairi, Jasmine and Mickey shared concerned and feared glances. What can they show to the Ethereal to prove their worlds are worth saving?

It was then that Kairi had a thought, and said, "Because of the people and other living things in all of the worlds, especially here."

"Yes." Jasmine added, realizing what her friend meant. "It's the people who make Agrabah great. We all work hard to care for one another, to help each other, and learn together each day."

"And not just here in Agrabah, but everywhere in other worlds too. Happiness, peace, and kindness are the greatest treasures to show people not only we love, but everybody else love for each other too." Mickey added.

"Sometimes we love each other and even those who need our help in saving, we risk our lives to safe them." Kairi added with a warm smile, turning her gaze to Sora and the others, "Like how we did in everything that has happened to us. As long other people who want to live happy lives are safe, that's what really matters."

"Everyone has new ideas each day, as long as we're careful not to cause problems. Sometimes things change, but other times they don't. It's really what we all do that makes our homes the greatest places in the Realm of Light." Sora nodded in agreement.

"Risking our lives to save others if definitely worth it." Kairi concluded.

A tensed pause. Then to their great surprise, the Ethereal smiled.

" _I have heard of your exploits, and how each of you had fought against the Heartless to save the worlds from darkness. Sacrificing yourselves for those more important to you are beyond what I have seen. Especially conjuring those who wish to do harm._ " The Ethereal surmised.

She gazed at the group once more before floating into the air. " _Cherish your people and loved ones, Princesses, King and Warriors. Or should you forget, I will return._ " With that, she disappeared.

Somehow relieved that they adverted another disaster, the group all sighed in relief, yet with renewed determinations to protect what really mattered; everyone in the Realm of Light.

"We won't forget. Not ever." Kairi whispered her promise, and smiled wider as Sora placed his arm around her shoulder as he smiled at her before the two shared a kiss, as did Aladdin and Jasmine.

Iago sighed in relief before he and Abu both quickly teared up every one of the scrolls and threw them into the air.

"This tourist business is kaput! There are some people you just don't want visiting your town." Iago declared, deciding that it wasn't worth it. Especially with everything he heard that cause problems to begin with; Xehanort, Chaos, Bhunivelze, the Master of Masters, and Aced.

With that, Sora and his friends shared a farewell to Aladdin, Jasmine, Genie, Abu and Iago before Sora, Riku and Kairi returned home to Destiny Islands while Mickey, Donald and Goofy returned home to Disney Castle as peace continued on.

 _ **KINGDOM HEARTS III: SECOND WAR  
**_ _ **&  
**_ _ **THE NEXT SAGA.**_

* * *

 **A/N: Still working on the next Saga of this series, but it won't be until after Kingdom Hearts III: Second War is finished which won't be until sometime next year.**

 **See you in the next back-scene!**


	4. Back-Scene 4

**Second Chance Universe(Series): Behind the Scenes.**

 **Author's Note: Good news and bad news; Riku is confirmed to be playable and the name for the final world "Scala ad caelum" (Translation: Stairway to Heaven) is revealed.**

 **But sadly the final battle trailer basically confirms that the real KH3 will not have a happy ending due to *SPOILERS* pretty much everyone except Sora will die. Hence to why I thought it's best to reveal it here, which will be added into "Kingdom Hearts III: Second War" because now the real game will be much like Infinity War(my greatest fear).**

 **Please remember that none of these will be in order.**

 **I don't own anything here.**

 _Back-Scene 4-The Tragic Vision: This takes place after Chapter 51 of "Kingdom Hearts III: Second War"..._

* * *

It was unlike anything Sora had ever seen. He knew that the ruins of Daybreak Town would be hard, but he never expected it to be in the same world as the Keyblade Graveyard. It was worse than in his nightmares that Vanitas had shown him. The builds were like made of dust and cracked, and unrecognisable. He could hear the faint gasps of shock and horror from Kairi, Aqua, Xion, and Skuld and he couldn't blame them. Even Riku, Donald, Goofy, Mickey, Lea, Isa, Myde, Roxas, Terra, Ven, Myde, Ephemer and Strelitzia gasped in shock and horror as they looke around.

"This is...this is what's left of Daybreak Town?" Strelitzia asked, horrified beyond belief and her heart aching at the devastation.

Myde let out a low whistle. "Man, the Keyblade War really did a number on this place, didn't it?"

"This is so awful. I knew it was bad but...this is...so terrible." Mickey muttered, shakily. If this is what the first Keyblade War had caused, he was scared to think of what would've happened if Xehanort had still been alive and gotten the War that he wanted.

"I didn't think...it would be this bad. I just hope we'll be able to stop Chaos and Bhunivelze before everything gets worse than it is here." Sora muttered, shaking his head, and he could've sworn his heart was shaking up.

"It was like this when the first war ended. But it's much worse now than it was all those years ago." Ephemer muttered, shaking his head in dismay. "How could've all this happen!?"

Skuld and Ven both gazed at their former fellow Dandelion Leader with sympathized looks and feelings of understanding. They knew what he was saying, but at the same time, it hurt them that their friend was blaming himself for what had happened in the past.

"It wasn't anyone but the Master of Master's fault." Kairi pointed out gently to him. "He knew it would happen and he just let it happen instead of making a difference like Sora did."

"Yeah, that guy sure messed up, and we were all used for whatever he wanted, much like how Xehanort almost killed us to get what he wanted." Lea nodded in agreement. Something about this place made his heart beat wildly in the intense fear and his stomach dropping at the very thought; had he not been revived a lot sooner, then things would've been different.

"Well, the important thing now is that we gotta find and stop Aced and save Master Yen Sid, Angeal and Genesis. Cloud and the others shouldn't be too far from us." Sora reminded firmly. He knew that they couldn't stand around to gaze at the horrific scenary. Right now, a crazed Keyblade Master needs to be stopped, and Mickey and Zack's Mentors and Genesis need to be saved before Lauriam, Arlene, Blaine, Ardyn, Caius and Chaos attacked, and before Bhunivelze awakens from his sleep.

But as Sora took a step, he suddenly felt a painful and powerful jolt that not only hit him in his mind, but also seizing his heart that made him cry out in agony. It was making him disorintated and dizzy, his vision becoming blurry.

"Wh-what's happening to me?" Sora grunted, feeling like he's about to pass out.

Apparently he wasn't the only one, because just as Kairi and the others were about to approach him when they saw this happen, she, Riku, Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Myde, Lea, Isa, Roxas, Xion, Terra, Ven and Aqua were all feeling the effects as well as they all held onto their heads, their eyes shut and they were unable to handle the agony. Not only that, Sora and those who were suffering this could hear faints of ringing in their ears, the sounds of weapons clashing, the faints of a familiar evil laughter, screams and agony.

Then a new image filled their senses and when they looked up, Skuld, Ephemer and Strelitzia had vanished, but what they saw filled their hearts with pure horror.

 _They saw themselves, but with Sora, Riku, Kairi and Mickey wearing different clothes, Lea still wearing Axel's Organization Coat, as were Demyx and Isa who, seeing himself as his Nobody with the golden amber eyes and pointy ears and scar, Terra still as Terranort, and even Aqua and Xion saw themselves having been possessed by Master Xehanort. Mickey was wielding Eraqus's Keyblade while Aqua had been wielding that Keyblade she saw in her vision more times than she can count._

 _Ven was absent, and Roxas, also wearing his coat and double-wielding two Keyblades, had his hood up._

 _Sora, Donald, Goofy, Riku, Mickey, Kairi and Lea were fighting against a never-ending horde of Heartless, Nobodies and Unversed, before facing the true Organization XIII themselves, but it seemed that all was completely lost:_

 _One by one, the Guardians side had fallen. Donald went first, much to the real Donald's horror. Next was Goofy who died in Sora's arms._

 _"_ GARWSH! _" The real Goofy screamed out, horrified._

 _Lea was next, and Kairi was screaming in agonized sorrow which had both the real Kairi and the real Lea struck in pure horror. Riku and Mickey soon followed with their Keyblades dropping. Finally, Kairi in attempting to defend Sora, fell and died in Sora's arms as well. Finally Terra and Aqua and Xion and Saix and Myde had fallen, being replaced by more vessels of Xehanort._

 _The Sora in the vision was angsted as he screamed in pure sorrow and agony before everything flashed in light, and the real Sora and his friends had to shield their eyes at the bright light. When it faded, both Soras and the real Sora's friends looked up all around them, was a huge fortress like City with a clear blue sky and white clouds. It reminded Terra, Ven and Aqua of their homeworld the Land of Departure._

 _The Sora in the vision was then confronted by Master Xehanort and his Organization XIII in thrones of the place, gazing down evilly at him, looking very victorious for having achieved his goal, having defeated the fools and gotten what he wanted and was pleased that Sora is the only survior left and he is left with nothing._

" _This is where my other selves and I will become one...here, where the power of the Keyblade Wielders used to sit._ " _Master Xehanort was saying._

 _Sora then found himself surrounded by all of Xehanort's copies and, despite the tears of having lost everything and everyone he loved, he held a tight grip on his Keyblade, ready to make the final stand._

As soon as it started, the vision had ended, and the real Sora and his friends, including those he had managed to save with the help of everyone else, felt the pain of the vision end, but it left them panting, shaken, horrified and traumatized. Each of them were panting as the pain began to dull.

"Was that...was that the other dimension that's happening right now?" Sora asked, more to himself than to anyone else. This was about the Foretellers in his dreams were telling him; that what could have happened was happening in one of the many alternate timelines that was going on at this moment. What he'd just seen, and he was certain the others had seen it too...

That was the other reality; the tragic reality.

"What did we...just see?" Myde asked in horrified disbelief. He'd come to belief that alternate universes were impossible, but what he just saw horrified him, more than anything.

"It's...the other reality that is happening. One of the time-lines split ever since Sora and Xehanort traveled through time." Aqua muttered in horror and dismay. She placed a hand to her heart, feeling it beating far too quickly and she felt it ache.

Lea was shakingly running a hand through his hair, his breathing quivering as he tried to come to the grips of the vision; in the other dimension, he died. Everyone did. Except for Sora. But even then, that outcome wasn't good.

"Does that mean...no matter what we do, the Realm of Light will be lost?" Roxas muttered, in disbelief and dismay. If none of them are able to stop Xehanort in the other dimension, then would that mean all hope was lost here too? Sure they defeated Xehanort here, but that came with a price.

Chaos and Bhunivelze.

"No...it can't be true!" Mickey shook his head quickly in denial, tears beginning to form in his eyes. It was bad enough that he failed in the past, and that Master Yen Sid's life was on the line. But what he had seen...his other self and the other selves of everyone here...were gone, just like that and Xehanort had won.

"Guys? What happened?" Ephemer asked, as he, Skuld and Strelizia, who'd been very worried about their friends, approached in great concern.

"...Our other selves have lost." Isa muttered grimly, clutching his fist tightly. "Xehanort has won and now rules the other dimension."

"The other me is the only survivor in that dimension, on the Guardians of Light side." Sora muttered, still on his knees and...his heart was aching badly, tears were forming in his eyes. He didn't know what to do. He'd known that the loss would be devastating here, but...for him to lose everyone he loved in all dimensions was even worse.

It was hopeless. Everything was hopeless. No matter what they did, whether it was Xehanort or Bhunivelze or Chaos or whoever else, the results will be the same. Sora would lose everyone he loved. The Realm of Light is finished.

"It's...just like in my nightmares, only without Bhunivelze and Chaos." Kairi muttered, sorrowfully, unconsciously holding Lea's hand as though afraid he would die here too.

"Sora?" Riku muttered, noticing his best friend's still kneeling position.

"It's all my fault...no matter what I do...I can't save the Realm of Light." Sora choaked back a sob, which shocked all of his companions. "How can everyone be saved if everything will be destroyed and we're no match for Xehanort's Keyblade or the gods!?"

Caius and Ardyn were right. Aced was right; it was over.

"Aced's right. We just make things worse. I just make things worse..." Sora continued feverishly. "Everyone will be gone and it'll be because of me!"

"Sora, what're you-?" Skuld began, only to gasp as Sora quickly stood up and ran off blindlessly into the ruins of Daybreak Town.

"Sora! Wait!" Kairi cried out, and without second thought, she hurried to follow him.

"Wait, Sora!" Mickey cried out, as he and the others made to follow, but Ephemer stood in front of them and firmly shook his head.

"Let him go. Sora needs to try and figure this out, and while I don't know Kairi as much as you guys do, I think she's the only one who can talk sense into him." The young man told them.

"But what if he ends up falling into darkness the way I had?" Terra pointed out. "I stormed off from Ven and Aqua in Radiant Garden and I didn't listen. If anything, all of this is my fault. If I hadn't been tricked, I would've stopped Xehanort sooner and no one else had to suffer and Sora wouldn't have to go through this or other scenarios which in the end...we lost the war before it even started."

"We don't know if we lost the war here in this time-line." Skuld pointed out firmly. "I don't know what you all saw, but Xehanort is gone, and things are different. Yes, there is that risk that we will not survive, but that doesn't meant we lost to Chaos and Bhunivelze and it's not Sora's fault and it's not your fault either, Terra."

"But what if we still fail to save the Realm of Light? Everyone will be gone." Xion said with tears of hopelessness.

Strelitzia sighed, before facing the group as well and began to explain, "That's the same hopeless Noel felt when Caius stabbed himself since he had the heart of Etro. But even when Serah died and her and Lightning's world had merged with the Unseen Realm and the world had to be rebuild, Serah was still revived and she and everyone else she met were still able to be together through rebirth. Bhunivelze was powerful, but he underestimated the power of Humanity. We can do the same thing again, and save the Realm of Light."

"Just because Xehanort won the war in the other dimension doesn't mean Bhunivelze and Chaos had won here. The only thing we can do is prepare ourselves and work together. We all knew the risks, but I don't want a repeat of what happened in the first Keyblade War." Skuld added.

Mickey and the others shared gloomy expressions, though new hope began to rise, but none of them were certain.

Plus, Sora was disheartened with what he'd seen. They can only hope that Kairi will be able to talk sense into him.

Otherwise things here in their dimension will be much, much worse than in the other dimension where everything is lost and it's all over.

 _ **KINGDOM HEARTS III: SECOND WAR.**_

* * *

 **A/N: This will be in a future chapter of "Kingdom Hearts III: Second War" and extended. But seeing the new trailer broke my heart as while I knew the outcome of the battle would be bad, it was devastating to see it which makes the ending even more unbearable even before anyone can see it. *Cries in the corner***

 **See you in the next Back-Scene.**


	5. Back-Scene 5

**Second Chance Universe(Series): Behind the Scenes.**

 **Author's Note: *MAJOR SPOILERS* Okay, we can mainly forget about what I said in the previous chapter, except that...well, Sora. Hopefully(though while it's extremely too early to conclude this, I'm not holding onto that much hope) KH4 will be made and Sora will return to us and reunite with Kairi and everyone else in the living world.**

 **Please remember that none of these will be in order and these will change slightly or more correctly in "Kingdom Hearts III: Second War".**

 **I don't own anything here.**

 _Back-Scene 5-The Nightmare and an Alternate Sora: This takes place after or during Chapter 50 of "Kingdom Hearts III: Second War"..._

* * *

 _Mickey's Nightmare:_

 _Mickey had no idea where he was. Actually, he knew where, but he didn't know how or why. It was the same as always, but this area was a bit different to what he remembered twelve years ago. One moment he saw himself being attacked by Aqua who had been trapped in the Realm of Darkness for too long and was corrupted by darkness, the next he found himself here. In the Keyblade Graveyard._

 _It was then that he saw, a familiar group as close to him as he knew; he saw himself in new clothing, as were Sora, Riku and Kairi. The four of them were with Lea who was still wearing his Organization XIII coat, Donald, Goofy, Aqua and Ven, all standing together...and Mickey saw someone else approach from a dust of cloud and his heart froze._

 _It was Terra still possessed by Xehanort._

 _"W-what's goin' on? Is...is this even real?" The King asked, suddenly getting a bad feeling about this. Was he seeing the future? Was this a nightmare? It shouldn't be this way. Where were Isa, Skuld, Roxas and Xion?_

 _He couldn't hear what Terra-Xehanort was saying, but judging the look on the man's face, and how everyone else were looking...beginning to lose hope, Mickey knew it was bad. Which was why no one, not even the real Mickey saw it coming, as Terra-Xehanort summoned the dark evil Keyblade and before anyone could stop him...he struck both Ven and Aqua down in an instant._

 _"NO!" Mickey screamed out in horror, but he couldn't feel himself move. All he, his otherself and everyone else could do was just stand there in horror as the lives of his two friends vanished before their eyes._

 _It seemed the torture didn't end here, because Xehanort began to laugh manically before he began to burst into pure darkness that spread all, through out the area and before anyone knew it, hundreds, thousands, if not millions of Heartless began to rain down and swarm. Mickey made to summon his Keyblade, but the Heartless were not effecting him as though he wasn't there at all. Instead, his other self along with the others charged forward to attack the Heartless..._

 _But it was no use. No matter how hard they tried, it wasn't enough. One Heartless Tide Swarm made to attack Sora, Kairi, Mickey and Goofy. But the real Mickey felt himself trapped and unable to move, as Donald suddenly stepped in and held up his Staff which burst into golden light that drove it away. But as he just stood there, the staff just simply vanished while Donald himself just collapsed onto the ground, fading away in particles of light as everyone else stood in pure horror and agonized sorrow and loss..._

 _Mickey couldn't hear Goofy, but he sensed more of his friend screaming out to Donald who had just died right in front of them, and Mickey himself felt tears began to form in his eyes. It was then that Goofy was quickly taken himself._

 _"Donald, Goofy! NO!" Mickey screamed out, but he couldn't move. He felt helpess and trapped. Everyone was getting killed by the barrade of Heartless right in front of him...and that included his other self who was swallowed up despite Riku trying to save him and Sora being thrown back and losing hope._

 _Kairi pushed Lea out of the way, but the latter hit his head on the rock and was soon engulfed and swallowed by the Heartless. The Princess of Heart began to cry as did Sora, and Mickey was losing his control in controlling his emotions as well. It wasn't long before Kairi was soon eaten herself by the swarm as she screamed out Sora's name before she too was gone, leaving only Sora and Riku who was fighting the Heartless and Sora fell to his knees, screaming and crying._

 _"This can't be happening...! Please...please tell me this is not true!" Mickey pleaded. He soon gasped as Riku, giving Sora final parting and encouraging words, calmly walked up to face the Heartless but it all but naught, as the silver haired teen was soon quickly gone as well._

 _At least Sora, in despair and fear and on his own, was the final victum as he let out a terrified and agonized scream before was struck and swallowed alive by the Heartless._

 _"RIKU! SORA!" Mickey screamed out, finally freeing himself from the invisible restrains that was holding him back and raced over, just as the Heartless began to then spread through out the entire area and he forced himself to skid to a stop. The Heartless were now forming into a cyclone of pure darkness. He gasped in horror. This was too much._

 _If his other self couldn't beat them, what chances did he get against this number? Mickey began to shake in pure fear, along with the heart-break of everyone eaten and struck down and killed right before his eyes, including himself. Soon enough the darkness spread everywhere so quickly that Mickey could only scream as he tried to shield himself with his arms and shut his eyes tightly, bracing himself for his own bitter end._

 _But he didn't feel a thing. Not a single Heartless hitting him or clawing him or anything like that. He didn't even feel the darkness pull out his own heart. Hesitating, Mickey opened his eyes and lowered his arms and saw the area, not swallowed up in darkness, but just blanketed in a dark sky like night. On top of that, he realized he was in a different and much more familiar part of the Keyblade Graveyard._

 _And it was much more heart-breaking and horrifying than what he just witnessed. Mickey gasped as he covered his mouth with his hands. All around in front of him...were lifeless bodies of all of his friends he just witnessed in getting killed by the Heartless; that now included the normal Terra, Isa, Myde and Skuld._

 _"Please, no..." Mickey silently pleaded. He felt sick in the stomach, his heart feeling as though it was being ripped into shreds. He was about to race over to the fallen bodies of everyone when they all vanished in golden light. It ripped his heart even faster than he would've liked, his tears falling freely as he choaked a sob._

 _He then heard manical laughter that made him seize up before looking behind him, in a mixture of sorrow and fear. Mickey spun around entirely in horror as a bright light of a silhouttee of a being he'd never seen before appeared before him, along with a monsterous form of Chaos and...a giant ghostly black form of the evil man he never thought he'd see again._

 _"Xehanort!?" Mickey exclaimed. No, this couldn't be! Xehanort died in the Realm of Sleep when Sora and Riku defeated him._

 _Mickey gasped again and shrank back in defense and fear as Xehanort's massive shadow loomed over him menacingly. He made to summon his Keyblade, but his body refused to listen. The King screamed as Xehanort's shadow hand that resembled to a Darkside Heartless clasped him by the lower part of his body, squeezing him around his waist._

 _"Lemme go! Lemme go!" Mickey yelled, futilessly trying to pull himself free and pound on the hand he was trapped in while Xehanort continued to laugh, resting his other hand around the one that held the King. "Lemme go!"_

"AH!" Mickey screamed as he jolted upright wide awake, panting and gasping in quick sensation as he felt his heart race rapidly in the near-paralyzing fear. He felt disorientated and for a brief moment had no idea where he was or what was happening.

"Mickey! Are you alright?"

Hearing a familiar warm and sweet gentle voice that always tends to calm him down, Mickey quickly looked to his right and saw his beloved wife Queen Minnie, who sat up in their shared bed in their Royal Bed Chamber and she looked very worried. Once he got his bearings and realized he was safe in his home with Minnie by his side and that everyone were still asleep in several guest rooms, in the middle of the night, Mickey slowly began to calm down.

It had been just a dream. A nightmare. Probably the worst nightmare he ever had in his entire life.

"Minnie...I'm sorry. I didn't meant to wake ya'." Mickey replied apologetically, realizing that his scream as he awoke from the nightmare woke his wife up as well and he felt bad about it.

"Oh, it's alright Mickey. I know you didn't mean it." Minnie said gently, then asked worriedly, "Is everything okay?"

Mickey thought back of the nightmare he'd just seen-no. It wasn't just any nightmare. He thought back of what Kairi had told him and the others earlier in the Throne Room.

 _"Remember the dreams I've told you guys about? It's starting to make sense. Chaos and Bhunivelze were in my nightmares, and that bright light, and the latest one stealing the light from my heart...they're going to use Kingdom Hearts!" Kairi told them which had everyone gasp in shock as well._

Not only that, he also remembered her saying how Xehanort was in her nightmares despite the evil man being dead. Mickey's heart froze up as he remembered seeing Chaos in his dream too along with Xehanort...and that other giant monster in light...

' _Oh no...! I'm having the same nightmares Kairi's been havin' now too!_ ' Mickey realized to himself in horror. If that's the case...then he had a terrible feeling it wouldn't be long before everyone else began to have these horrible visions as well. But would that mean Xehanort will return again? But it didn't make sense if the Master of Masters was here, having reclaimed the Keyblade that was originally his and not always Xehanort's.

He must've been silent for too long, because Minnie gently placed a hand onto his own, causing Mickey to glance at her and suddenly he felt another fear; the fear of never being able to see her again if things turn out the way he saw in the nightmare.

"Mickey?" Minnie gently asked, getting more and more worried.

Realizing there was no point in hiding it, Mickey sniffled as the ache in his heart over the loss of his friends in the nightmare lingered and he didn't want that to become a reality, but he had a terrible feeling that it will be.

"I just had the most horrible nightmare. E-Everyone including me...we were all...we were all killed by a large army of Heartless...and Xehanort was still alive." Mickey admitted, and when Minnie gasped in horror at this, he couldn't hold it back anymore as he began to cry, tears falling freely. "I don't want that happenin' for real...but I don't know if it's the future telling me it'll happen or not...! I don't wanna lose everyone!"

"Oh, Mickey. It'll be alright." Minnie tried to soothe him, pulling her husband into an embrace as Mickey, needing comfort, hugged her back and cried on her shoulder. In truth, Minnie didn't want to lose Mickey either. She almost lost him more times than she can count, but she knew at this moment she couldn't cry herself. Mickey was in despair, and he needed her. Now more than ever.

"I-I love you, Minnie." Mickey sobbed, not wanting to let go of his true love, his stronger light.

* * *

Unaware to the two royals, Sora, who had just had the very similar nightmare himself, lingered outside of their bedroom door and had heard the King scream and then explain what happened. The sixteen year old boy felt a horrified feeling within his own heart, before lowering his gaze to the floor and somberly walked away, his heart heavy and the hope he held in saving the Realm of Light now fading faster than the Heartless killing his friends and himself in the nightmare he just had.

The same one Mickey had.

Sora entered the hallway that overlooked the Garden of the Castle, and stopped to lean against the railing as he gazed up at the starry night sky. Possibly for the last time in whatever peace he and his friends had. It hurt...very much. He thought he understood hurt, but now it was clear that he didn't. He never did understand how much it hurt to lose people close to him. The nightmare he and Mickey had just proved it.

Even though Sora knew that Xehanort is gone, the fact that Chaos and very possibly Bhunivelze appeared didn't help matters. The battle against the two evil gods could very well play out like how Xehanort would want; then everyone including himself were doomed to face death for all eternity...

Riku, Donald, Goofy, Mickey, Roxas, Lea, Xion, Namine, Isa, Myde, Skuld, Ven, Terra, Aqua...and Kairi.

Sora could clearly remember the kiss he and Kairi shared in Coronia, and while he wouldn't admit it to anyone else, it was the most wonderful experience he ever had.

 _Sora blushed heavily as Kairi leaned up while closing her eyes and kissed him on the lips. Surprised at first, Sora soon found himself returning it while closing his eyes and the two wrapped each other in their arms as they kissed._

 _Though when it did, both of them sighed before Kairi snuggled up in Sora's chest, and he held her close._

To think that such a wonderful moment would never happen again made Sora tear up before he began to cry softly as the cold realization hit him almost like how the Heartless took away his friends before killing him in that nightmare...a nightmare that looked and felt all too real, like he was seeing an alternate universe right before his eyes. His tears trailed down his face and onto the cold stone of the railing.

 _"_ _I didn't sign up to be told the whole thing is pointless! Not that I don't have faith in everyone else here, but I'm useless! I'm chicken!"_ Myde's words echoed in Sora's mind from earlier today, or yesterday by now.

' _...I'm more useless than he is. I can't do this by myself...I can't do anything on my own without everyone else helping me._ ' Sora thought to himself, which made him cry harder.

" _The others are what make us stronger. Especially Kairi._ "

"H-huh?" Sora blinked. That voice. It was his own...but he didn't say that, even though it did sound like him. Groaning in half-realization, Sora lowered his head and grumbled to what he thought was Vanitas talking to him again. "I'm not in the mood for you, Vanitas. If you're trying to make me feel better with a mocking joke, it's not working."

" _What are you talking about, idiot? That wasn't me._ " Vanitas spoke in his mind in confusion and annoyance.

" _Wait. Vanitas? You got Vanitas inside you?_ " The second voice asked in shock and disbelief.

This time it was Sora's turn to be very confused as he realized he was hearing two voices now and not just one and he wasn't even speaking other than what he just said to Ven's dark embodiment in his mind. If that wasn't Vanitas, then who...? Sora turned around to see who was talking to him in his voice...and found himself staring at himself, but a bit of a hair cut, and while Sora still wore the clothes he retrieved from the three Good Faries when he, Donald and Goofy first arrived at Yen Sid's Tower, the other Sora was wearing what he'd seen in his nightmare;

This other Sora not only looked a bit see-through like a ghost, but he was wearing a black jacket having grey pockets and a stripe of red on each sleeve. The hood, sleeves and jacket had red lining and six buttons on the front. Underneath was a grey t-shirt with a V-style collor and a white lining. He also wore gaunlets that matched his jacket except they had grey circles on the backs, with the palms of his hands exposed. His shorts were roughly the same length as the ones the real Sora was wearing with armored sides that were attached to red straps and black that wrapped around his legs. His shoes looked the same except they didn't have the blue stripes or zippers.

To say that Sora was shocked beyond belief would've been an understatement.

"AH!" Sora yelped, nearly falling off the railing but stopped himself as he leaned back in fright. His outburst startled his other self who reacted the same way as he did. "Y-you're-!"

" _Oh wonderful. Now I can torment two of you instead of just one. Wonder who I'll pick on first today?_ " Vanitas remarked sarcastically. Like many times before, Sora just ignored him.

" _Yeah, I guess this is totally weird, huh? Me meeting my alternate self after changing the future for as best as I could. On the other hand, Time really is messed up._ " The other Sora admitted, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.

"Huh? Change the future? But, I somehow already did that; Me and Roxas saved Axel." Sora pointed to his...alternate-self as he could call the other Sora. He then realized something else and gasped, becoming horrified again. "Wait! You're wearing the same clothes I saw in the nightmare! So...that means...everyone in your time-line is gone?"

" _For a while, yeah. But Chirithy helped me figure out how to save everyone's hearts and bring them all back. I even managed to stay whole even after I died, because Kairi guided me; the Kairi I know. She's the light in the darkness that helps guide the way back. We both brought everyone back to just before we were all killed by the Heartless._ " The Other Sora explained.

"Uh..." Sora held a puzzled look, tilting his head to the side slightly.

" _The power of waking. First I had to find myself and put myself back together in the Final World; where everyone who perished go to. Then I had to traverse to each world to find the hearts of the others and guide them back to just before we faced Terra when he was still possessed by Xehanort. His armor, thanks to Namine reaching him, saved Aqua and Ven, and when I charged towards the Heartless Horde, I had help from the Keyblade Wielders of the past and their Keyblades. They helped me and the others to stop the Heartless and we all survived._ "

"The other Time-line the Foretellers told me; the one that has the other promising future." Sora realized, hope that he felt fade suddenly return to him slowly. Though the chances of that happening to him may be unlikely, but Sora couldn't give up now. Not when they still had a lot to do.

" _Huh?_ " The other Sora blinked, confused this time.

"Uh, n-never mind." Sora stuttered sheepishly. "Wait, the power of waking? It can do that? I thought it was to only to wake up sleeping worlds and sleeping hearts."

" _Not really. But...the downside to that is...if the power of waking is used too much and not properly...you'd have to...well, this is the result of what's happened to me. I had to fade away in order to save Kairi after we all closed up Kingdom Hearts._ " The other Sora admitted.

"You mean...fade away?" Sora stuttered, his own hope now plummeting right back to where it started just moments ago. So if he used the power of waking if everyone else died, the result would him be dying too after they were brought back to life?

Then...did Xehanort kill Kairi in the other dimension? Given what Sora's other self had said, it made sense and Sora himself felt fear linger in his heart. The very thought of Kairi being killed by the hands of that horrible man...it was devastating and Sora knew he would never be able to live without her. Which meant, given the choice, the only way for her to live is for him to sacrifice himself which, while it wasn't fair that he wouldn't be with her at all, as long as she and everyone else were safe, alive and happy, that was enough for him.

" _It was a choice I made, and I am sad I can't be with everyone anymore, I don't regret it. On the other hand, I've seen two other futures of what would happen to me._ " Alternate-Sora replied.

"Like what?" Sora asked.

" _In one, I stay dead forever which is okay. In another...well, Riku is trying to figure out how to bring me back without doing the same thing I did. Though whichever way works, I'm pretty okay with being like this. What I didn't expect was that I end up in an alternate universe to see that Xehanort is defeated another way._ "

"Yeah, well, it's not any better. Now we got Chaos and Bhunivelze and one of the Foretellers to worry about. Not to mention Caius and Ardyn, and Maleficent and Pete looking for the Book of Prophecies and a black box." Sora sighed.

The other Sora suddenly groaned, because he grumbled. " _Ugh! I forgot about Maleficent and Pete looking for the black box! Great, now the others have to stop them without me._ "

" _Heh. Looks like every other version of you is the same._ " Vanitas retorted, with a hint of a smugged look in his voice.

' _Will you please be quiet?_ ' Sora groaned mentally.

" _Well, anyway. Even though Xehanort's gone in both dimensions, you gotta try really hard in not making the same mistake I did and being forced to change history a little. Our hearts are the real keys into this. Do me a favor and don't let anything happen to your Kairi, okay? I don't want any other versions of us go through what I went through._ " Alternate-Sora advised.

While Sora had no idea how to respond to that, he knew that his other self was right; what had happened in the nightmare had happened in the original-time line that had his alternate self to change history to stop the deaths of everyone else and then Sora realized he was now beginning to see other dimensions, just as Caius had warned.

All dimensions of every reality were beginning to merge, and Sora in this dimension had to do everything he could to fix that without losing everyone.

"...I'll do my best. I'll protect Kairi, and everyone else." Sora finally replied. No, he will do harder than that; he had to do everything he could to prevent this and do everything he can to stop Chaos and the other villains out there. He just had to make sure how to master the power of waking without losing himself the same way his alternate self did.

" _Thank you. Oh, and another thing; go easy on the other Organization members who aren't Xehanort._ "

"Uh...okay? The only ones I can't figure out are Marluxia and Larxene. Everyone else is cool, and-oh, right! Even, Aeleus and Dilan need to be saved." Sora remembered.

" _Okay. Be careful out there. If we're lucky, maybe I can help you in spirit since I'm a ghost now. Gotta stop you and our other selves from ending up like me._ " Alternate-Sora held out his hand to Sora who smiled a little in saddness.

The two Sora's shook hands and Sora was surprised that the grip was somehow solid even though it was light and somewhat cold but warm at the same time. Soon as they did, Sora's other self then vanished like a wisp in the wind and Sora's grip on his other self's hand was gone.

It was...so weird to be talking to himself from another dimension. But at the same time, Sora knew now that he had to try more than his best to ensure that what had happened in that dimension would not happen here.

"I'll protect Kairi...and everyone else. I won't let anyone of my friends die." Sora vowed to himself, turning to face the night sky once more.

He had to do this...without the power of waking.

 _ **KINGDOM HEARTS III: SECOND WAR.**_

* * *

 **A/N: Like the previous chapter before, this will be in chapter 50 of "Kingdom Hearts III: Second War". While the ending was mostly what I hoped for, seeing Sora disappear and having died to revive Kairi made me upset to now having to wait for KH4(I'm hoping it will come but I somehow don't think it will ever happen despite what the Epilogue and Secret Ending say) or at least the DLC.**

 **I'm hoping that the next future game of KH will involve Sora being revived and reunited with everyone as Riku very likely went out to go and save him just as Sora had done to save Kairi, but I don't see that happening. I could be wrong(I'm hoping I'm wrong about KH4 not coming) but you never know.**

 **See you in the next back-scene.**


	6. Back-Scene 6

**Second Chance Universe(Series): Behind the Scenes.**

 **Author's Note: Now we return to the other previous stories in chapters already made and posted. This time it revolves around Mickey's full reunion with Aqua after they and the others return from the Realm of Sleep.**

 **I don't own anything here.**

 _Back-Scene 6-"I'm so sorry": This takes place while Sora and Riku are within Vincent's heart in the final chapter of "Second Life"..._

* * *

"So...how long is this gonna take?" Reno awkwardly asked after about three minutes since Sora and Riku entered Vincent's heart.

"Well, it's not gonna be five minutes, that's for sure." Cloud muttered in sarcasm.

"So how're Sora and Riku gonna wake Vincent up?" Zack inquired, rubbing the back of his head in confusion.

"To awaken Vincent's heart, Sora and Riku need to use the Power of Waking they achieved in locking the Keyholes of worlds that fell into the Realm of Sleep." Yen Sid spoke after retreating back to chair. "It is not the matter of how long it will take, but the matter of concentrating on fufilling their task."

Reno still looked confused and awkward as he shared a glance with Rude who's face remained blank, but the redhead didn't need his friend to make an expression as he sensed it more from his eyes behind those shades. Reno turned back to Yen Sid again and asked, "How can worlds fall asleep, and why were we awake in that boring white room that guy Xehanort or whatever his name was? How does that work?"

Mickey was the one who answered this time, because he said, "It's because like us, all worlds have hearts of their own. Worlds without hearts end up falling into darkness, and those who haven't been fully healed end up in a deep sleep within the Realm of Sleep. The only way to bring them back is to lock up the Keyholes. That's why Sora and Riku were there, as part of their Mark of Mastery Exam."

"This is different to the Mark of Mastery Exam both Terra and I took part in twelve years ago." Aqua admitted, having taken her place to sit next to the sleeping Terra. "When Master Eraqus tested us, the power of Waking wasn't involved."

"Neither was my Mark of Mastery. But I guess it's because it's different for every Keyblade wielder." Mickey shrugged, though his posture was awkward and somewhat stiff when he gazed at his old friend.

"Why am I getting a feeling like with Sora and Riku's exam that Xehanort messed up with hers?" Lea asked, a bit uneasily.

Aqua looked away, in what looked like guilt. "It's because...it's because Xehanort tempted Terra into giving his heart to darkness, so that-"

"So that Terra could be used as his vessel." Mickey interrupted, casting Aqua an apologetic glance when she glanced at him. "Xehanort told me, Sora and Riku this when we confronted him while trying to save Vincent. After that...well...I guess Xehanort lost his memory and was found by Ansem the Wise and became his apprentice...Or maybe he pretended to lose his memory and lied to everybody."

The King felt his heart ache painfully as he said this. It hurt so much that Xehanort had been alive within Terra all this time, and...and Mickey failed to see it. He should've known the name wasn't common nor a coincidence. But he just assumed that it was, and now he knew it was his mistake, the downfall and even worse, the Realm of Light had to pay that price. It brought everyone else involved, and he almost lost them. Radiant Garden fell because of his blindness. Ansem the Wise is dead because of the same blindness. Sora, Riku, Kairi, Lea, and Isa were unexpectedly dragged into this cruel path because of it as well. The worlds were put into danger since two years ago because he failed to see through that blindness.

"So...what's why Terra had silver hair earlier?" Lea asked, now even more uneasy and more than a little disgusted. Isa grunted and given the tone of voice, the redhead knew that his friend was disgusted by Xehanort's actions as well.

"That's so terrible. Why would Xehanort do such a thing?" Kairi gasped, horrified while Roxas and Xion both shared a horrified glance.

"We can only assume that Xehanort intended to extend his life, to see what would come after the Keyblade War should he have succeeded in recreating the X-Blade. To do that, he needed a younger, stronger vessel to make it come to pass." Yen Sid grimly answered, and both Mickey and Aqua nodded in agreement.

"So what is the X-Blade? Is it similar to any other Keyblades?" Cloud questioned, thoroughly disgusted of Xehanort's actions.

"It is the counterpart of Kingdom Hearts, the key in opening it. If opened, the Realm of Light would be consumed into darkness and cease to exist as we know it. Only this time...there would be no survivors." The powerful Sorcerer answered.

"That's sick!" Zack yelled angrily. "I don't care who this Xehanort guy think he was, but he's definitely a monster if he's willing to kill everyone in all of the worlds!"

"Indeed. Had it not been for Sora and everyone else, Xehanort would have caused a mass murder." Rufus nodded in agreement.

"Damn." Reno breathed in disgust and disbelief. "And I thought Hojo was sick, but Xehanort might as well be just as bad."

Lea nodded in agreement. "Yeah, that's Xehanort for you. Ruins people's lives just to get what he wanted; no care for anything other than the stupid Keyblade War and whatever else that involves people being killed or suffered."

"Personally, I wouldn't be surprised if Xehanort took pleasure in making people suffer or killed." Isa nodded in agreement.

"That makes me scared of Xehanort even more even though he's gone." Goofy muttered, and Donald whimpered in agreement.

Mickey closed his eyes as he commented, "It's not easy to let go of the fear of someone or somethin' even though they're gone or from stories that aren't real."

"Forget Xehanort being scary even though he's just...I dunno, a monster, I guess? It's Chaos I'm freaked out about." Lea commented, shuddering slightly.

"Oh yeah...I almost forgot about that guy, or thing or...whatever it is." Reno shifted uncomfortably.

"Well, you're right about that." Mickey shivered himself, but when he looked at Aqua and saw her guilt-ridden expression, his heart ached even more as a memory came to him like a nightmare that repeated over and over.

* * *

 _Flash-back: During the events of "Kingdom Hearts 0.2 Birth By Sleep: A Fragmentary Passage" and "Kingdom Hearts 1"..._

 _Mickey ran as fast as he could, to try and stop the large Heartless Wave from reaching Riku. But he was too far and was too slow, fearing that they wouldn't be able to make it. But to his shock and surprise, Aqua jumped, summoning her Keyblade and somehow trapped it in it's magical chains. Mickey skid to a stop and he gasped. She was struggling to hold it in it's place._

 _"Aqua!" Mickey cried out, making to help her._

 _"Go without me!" She yelled back._

 _His heart froze and sank. Aqua was sacrificing herself again...this time to save both Riku and himself! Mickey couldn't leave her! Not again! Not when he finally found her after looking for her, Ven and Terra for ten years!_

 _"No, I-!" He was cut off when the Heartless broke free, now more furious than ever. Mickey couldn't move as he and Aqua were both caught off-guard. The Heartless Wave engulfed them both and Mickey screamed as he felt himself feeling like a giant was swallowing him whole, mixed up with berries like he was in a fruit salad bowl and a grip like the said giant was clasping him and squeezing him to death. He heard Aqua scream echoing his scream and at that split second moment, he was terrified._

 _Terrified that the Heartless would seep into their chests and pull out their hearts. Mickey could see Aqua a bit in front of him, and she looked just as buried and eaten as he was feeling. He tried to pull himself free from this wave Heartless, desperately trying to reach out to her. But the Heartless refused to let him go as they were hungry for his and Aqua's hearts._

 _'_ Someone help us! _' Mickey pleaded in his mind, the shear terror of losing his friend and dying before he and Sora could save the remaining worlds slowly overcoming his mind. It can't end this way! '_ HELP! _'_

 _Then, as if the Heartless were not interested in him, or perhaps the Keyblade of Darkness he inherited was protecting him that they feared it's power more than any regular Keyblade, Mickey felt himself being released and thrown out of the wave and screamed as he crashed onto the ground. But the darkness of those monsters did damage his shirt which disappeared into golden light. Pushing himself up quickly, he could only watch in pure horror as the Heartless Wave zoomed right through the door which led to the ruins of Destiny Islands..._

 _With Aqua still held captive._

 _"AQUA!" Mickey screamed in despair and distraught as the end of the Heartless Wave vanished through the door which slammed shut and then vanished without a trace, leaving only a wall and him stuck in the area with Riku. '_ NO! _' He thought to himself in dismay._

 _Mickey couldn't believe it. His friend...one he hasn't seen in ten years and had just found...was gone. In the matter of minutes. He stood up and reached over to where the wall was, his heart aching in guilt and devastation._

 _"Aqua..." He muttered, the urge to cry for the loss almost overwhelming him. But then he remembered; she survived ten years in this horrible place. Her heart was strong. Full of pure light. Plus, she knew that the Door to Darkness had to be closed, and she had risked her freedom to save Riku and Mickey himself. In that respect, she...was a lot like himself. Aqua now counted on him to save the worlds._

 _'_ Don't worry, Aqua. I'll come back for you. I promise! Just...give me a little more time, okay? _' He thought to himself as he renewed his resolve. Knowing what to do, Mickey turned and hurried to help his other friends as quickly as possible._

* * *

End Flash-Back:

' _Except...I didn't come back for her...Xion was the one who saved Aqua. Everyone was put into danger because of me..._ ' Mickey thought to himself. He failed his friends, and while everyone was safe and sound now...well, except for Sora and Riku who could potentially be lost with Vincent, Mickey couldn't help but feel like he was the worst friend anyone could have. Every mistake he'd made costed him his friends and other people in other worlds.

"Mickey? Are you okay?"

"Huh?" Mickey blinked, as Aqua's voice brought him back to reality. He gazed at her and realized she was now looking at him with vague concern, and so was everyone else. He then realized he must've been silent and reminishing longer than he intended. But was her face, and the fact he failed her...that made him decide he had to mend the bond he knew for certain he broke and hadn't meant to. The bond of their friendship.

"U-uh, Aqua? Can I...talk to ya for a few minutes? In private?" Mickey hesitatedly asked.

Not sure why Mickey felt the need to talk to her in private, Aqua suddenly felt it was important. Nodding, she stood up and the two Keyblade Masters excused themselves for those few minutes before heading out the door, leaving Kairi and everyone else except for Yen Sid to share concerned and confused glances.

* * *

The lower they went down the stairs, the more Mickey was struggling to steel himself for what he was about say and how Aqua would reactor. He was certain she was going to yell at him, for leaving her behind. Though while they haven't known each other for that long, Mickey had already sensed she was a forgiving type like he was, but...he left her behind, and it was eating him alive.

Once they reached outside, Mickey took a deep breath and shakily breathed out.

"Is something wrong?" Aqua asked once they were alone outside.

"It's just...um...do ya...remember the last time we met? I-In the Realm of Darkness?" Mickey began.

To his shock, she replied with confusion and apologetically. "No. I...don't remember meeting you in the Realm of Darkness. All I do remember was that I was wandering around there for a long time."

"W-what?" Mickey stuttered, his heart sinking faster than a sunken ship.

"What were you doing there? Did something happen?" Aqua asked.

' _So she doesn't remember anything about the worlds falling into darkness...or even when she risked her life to save Riku and me._ ' Mickey thought to himself, which made his guilt increase. Not even memories were safe from that horrible place. Which means...he would have to tell her everything that she didn't remember...at least from his point of view.

Steeling himself up for it, Mickey began, "W-well...ya see...Um..."

He then told her from when he first entered the Realm of Darkness just like he did when they met up again, about what Aqua said to Mickey himself, the Kingdom Key-D, Kingdom Hearts and Sora and Riku, and finally, he reached to the part about when Aqua herself sacrificed herself to protect him and Riku and how the Heartless Wave trapped her back in the Realm of Darkness and Mickey had been helpless to help her, and that he made a promise to find her again. By the time he finished, he felt himself starting to hyperlate and on the urge to break down into tears.

Unable to gaze at her when he noticed her shocked expression, Mickey looked to the ground and closed his eyes, before he began to blurt out and cried out softly. "I-I'm so sorry, Aqua! I didn't mean to leave you there all by yourself! And I didn't even-I didn't even think that Xehanort had-had taken over Terra's body! If I did, I would've stopped all of this and everybody else wouldn't have gotten involved! That I'd save Terra, get you out and find a way to help ya' find Ven's heart!"

Mickey then lost his battle to hold it back and cried. It's been years since he cried liked this, and he really thought he matured enough to able not to do so. Turns out he was wrong about that too.

"It's all my fault! It's all my fault and I'm so very sorry!" Mickey sobbed, his tears falling freely and he didn't even borther to stop them. He knew for certain he was going to be yelled at; for abandoning his friend, and scolded loudly for crying like a small child but at the moment, he deserved to be yelled at, and didn't care if he was crying like this.

Which was why he was a little surprised when he felt her hand gently rest on his head. When Mickey looked up hesitatedly, there was no anger or betrayal on his friend's face. Instead, it was...sadness, worry, sympathy, and guilt...with tears forming in her own eyes as well.

"It's not your fault, Mickey." She told him, her voice full of tears. "I'm the one...who put everyone in risk. I wasn't strong enough to free Terra...and I hurt my friends more than anything...I couldn't save them or stop Xehanort...and I left you with such a heavy burden. To continue what I should've finished a long time ago...I'm so sorry, Mickey. And thank you...for not forgetting me."

"Oh, Aqua." Mickey sniffled, before he threw his arms around her shoulders and leaned against her neck. Aqua wrapped her arms around his body, holding him close. They were both emotionally wrecked, in more ways than one. But more than anything, they were about as close friends as they could imagine.

After what felt like an eternity, which in reality was about seven minutes, that both Mickey and Aqua let go of each other after calming down, wiping away their tears and smiled at each other.

"I guess we both needed to let it all out." Aqua said softly.

"Yeah, I think you're right. To tell the truth, I was so afraid that you'd be mad at me, even though I deserve it." Mickey replied, sheepishly scratching the back of his head. "Gosh, Minnie always gets mad at me when I mess somethin' up or when I forgot our dates I thought I would be used to it by now."

This made Aqua giggle, "You haven't changed at all."

Mickey just laughed along with his friend, knowing that she was right. As they did, he felt the heavy burden and weight lift from his shoulders and his heart. He still felt guilty for what had happened, but Aqua was such a warm hearted person that she can be forgiving. Much like Sora. Mickey was glad...to have such good friends, and was glad...he was forgiven.

After giving each other a nod and ready to return to the others, Mickey and Aqua with warm smiles headed back to the tower to rejoin their friends, both old and new, to await the return of Sora and Riku and the awakening of Vincent.

Once that's done, then it was the matter of awakening Ven. The last person needed to be saved from hurt.

 _ **SECOND LIFE  
**_ _ **SECOND LIFE: SECRET EPISODE  
**_ _ **AND  
**_ _ **KINGDOM HEARTS III: SECOND WAR.**_

* * *

 **A/N: To tell the truth, I kinda felt that Mickey was somewhat the main protagonist in Kingdom Hearts 3 and should've been playable. Come to think of it, I felt that he should've had his own episode story in "Kingdom Hearts 0.2 Birth By Sleep: A Fragmentary Passage" showing his journey in the Realm of Darkness and how he managed to get in before being reunited with Aqua.**

 **See you in the next back-scene.**


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